Lloyd C. Stark

Lloyd Stark (1939)

Lloyd Crow Stark (born November 23, 1886 in Louisiana , Missouri , † September 17, 1972 in Clayton , Missouri) was an American politician and from 1937 to 1941 the 39th governor of the state of Missouri.

Early years and political advancement

Lloyd Stark attended schools in his home country. He then graduated from the US Naval Academy until 1908 , after which he served as a naval officer for four years. Then he worked in his family's nursery. During the First World War he served in the US Army . He was used on the battlefields in France and made it to major.

Stark was a member of the Democrats . In the 1930s, this Missouri party was controlled by the influential Tom Pendergast , whose protégé Stark was initially. This also enabled Stark to be nominated as the party's top candidate for the upcoming gubernatorial elections in 1936. After winning the election, Stark separated from Pendergast, who was more and more obviously involved in corruption affairs. Pendergast was later charged and convicted of tax evasion.

Missouri governor

Stark took up his new office on January 11, 1937. During his four-year tenure, the budget deficit was reduced and corruption and organized crime were combated. A new police law was introduced in Kansas City . Domestic trade barriers were lifted in those years, benefiting the Missouri economy. From 1939 to 1940, Stark chaired the National Governors Association .

Another résumé

In 1940, Stark ran for a seat in the US Senate . In the internal party primaries , he challenged the incumbent under later US President Harry S. Truman . Although politically weakened because of his connection to Tom Pendergast , Truman was still able to win narrowly. After the end of his governorship, Stark withdrew from politics and devoted himself again to the family-owned tree nursery. Lloyd Stark died on September 17, 1972. He was buried in Jefferson City . Stark was married twice and had a total of four children.

Web links

• Lloyd Stark in the National Governors Association (English)
• Lloyd C. Stark in the Databank Find a Grave (English)